Best Wimbledon match ever
Raja, The Great
Boris Becker at his best. Lendl also playing very well. I remember
watching this classic 5 setter. I was sad for Lendl and hoped Becker
will win the final, which he did. Lendl was leading 2 sets to 1 until
the rains came and he lost momentum. I think this was his best chance.
If he had beaten Becker and played in the same level in the final, he
would have beaten Edberg too.
The volleys are excellent from both sides. And also the passing shots.
I prefer Lendl's forehand but prefer Becker's backhand, though Lendl's
backhand is amazing too. Becker of course is more natural at the net,
but Lendl's volleys were great too. Becker's serve is slightly better
too. The grass was much faster those days. The ball hardly bounces!
I read somewhere that Becker said he hoped Lendl wins Wimbledon once
back in the 80s. He was a good guy but he is the one responsible for
Lendl not winning Wimbledon. He beat him thrice in Wimbledon 86, 88
and 89, which were the three best Becker years if you go by win-loss
and tournaments won. The draw was slightly screwy for Lendl. Imagine
Becker playing Edberg in the 88 and 89 semis and Lendl getting some
chump instead. In 88 Edberg was better, so he would have won the match
and Lendl would have faced Edberg in the final. And Lendl had beaten
Edberg in the 87 semis. So he would have probably won it. And in 1989,
Becker would have won the semis against Edberg but he would have been
exhausted for the finals and may be Lendl would have had a chance?
Lendl's best chances were from 1986 to 1990 when he was really good on
grass, too bad, he never won it even once.
Raja, The Great
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/162033-ivan-lendl-greatest-grass-court-player-never-to-win-wimbledon
Ivan Lendl was one the most dominant players of the late '80s. He won
eight grand slams, reached the finals of 11 others (more than any
other player to date), held the world No. 1 for 270 weeks (more than
any player except Pete Sampras).
The list is endless.
However, he was denied the biggest title of them all—the Wimbledon
Championship.
It's not hard to figure out why. He possessed a big—but inconsistent—
first serve, he did not like the low and awkward bounce at this
surface, and most of all, he was never as comfortable at the net like
a great grass-courter.
However, a closer look at his career would reveal that he was, in
fact, an excellent grass-court player, unfortunate not to lay hands at
this coveted trophy.
Lendl’s Career on Grass
Lendl had an 81–25 record on grass, and with a winning percentage of
more than .76, a better record than many Wimbledon champions.
His performance is often underrated at Wimbledon. He pushed through
the Wimbledon draws several times, reaching the final four seven
times, including two final appearances in ’86 and ’87. In addition, he
was also a finalist at the Australian Open in ’83 and a semifinalist
in ‘85, when it was played on grass.
Stiff Competition
It is said that the secret recipe of success is 95 percent talent and
hard work, and 5 percent luck. While Lendl scored profoundly in the
first one, he failed appallingly in the second.
Lendl played in an era that included some of the greatest grass-court
players of all time—John McEnroe, Boris Becker, and Stefan Edberg—at
the peak of their careers!
Lendl ran into a peak Mac in ’83 and Connors in ’84; the charismatic
German, Becker, in ’86, ’88, and ’89; and the sublime Swede, Edberg,
in ’90. Edberg also took him out in the Australian Open semifinal in
’85.
In the remaining final in ’87, he lost to Pat Cash, who was on a dream
run just like Richard Krajicek in ’96.
Not bad players to lose to!
Despite this, Lendl outplayed Mac and Becker on course to win the
Queen’s in ’90 (which is considered the finest grass-court tennis by
many), and stretched Becker and Edberg full distance on grass, even
managing to defeat Edberg at Wimbledon in ’87.
Lendl’s Adaption on Grass
Lendl often criticized grass-court tournaments as the ones meant for
“cows,” but there was no person in history more committed to improving
his record at Wimbledon than Lendl.
Lendl skipped the French Open two times, when he was the favorite to
win it, to practice on grass. He employed Tony Roche to improve his
net game, and became a very competent volleyer during the late '80s.
In fact, so good, that he had the confidence to attack the net even on
his second serves!
Probably the only fault of Lendl was that he tried to emulate McEnroe
or Becker, rather than the other great Wimbledon champion, Borg.
The reason that made Borg successful was the way he effectively hid
his comparatively weaker volleys by not coming in on second serves.
Lendl exposed himself. Good returners like Becker and Edberg routinely
passed him in the open court or strangled him with returns at his
feet.
It's the reason Pat Cash beat him in 1987.
Raja, The Great
As a sportswriter back in the day wrote: "While it may be true that
Ivan loves small animals and children, there's absolutely no evidence
they love him."
LOL
Quincy
ca1houn
lol yet he has no Wimbledon title lol go fuck yourself raja
bubba
Hey Raja, Wimble-off